Weekend Update 9/29/13

[up1950s]

[Ian MacMillan]

"Moah" drywall.

[LIRR]

Looks good. I love the smell of drywall in the evening...

[VirginaCSX]

You must have taken a break to post Ian, you usually are posting late into the night!  PROGRESS is good!! 

[eric220]

I worked for awhile with my Q2 to improve electrical pickup and transfer between the engine and tender.  It's by no means perfect, but given that problems have started popping up at specific places on the layout, the issues seem to have moved from the loco itself to the fact that it's really picky about trackwork.  Here she is on her maiden loop with train in tow:



Since then, she has completed many loops around the layout.  She's certainly a stump-puller, even without the traction tire.  Many thanks to the Laurel Valley Shops for the DCC install!

The only other thing that I've managed to accomplish is completing my lighting project.  The basement is now entirely lit by 5,000K LED bulbs.  The entire track lighting array draws a whopping 200 watts (about the same as 3 incandescents), and more importantly, the lights don't double as heaters anymore.  The incandescents could easily overwhelm the AC in the room, even on a mild day.  Also, my camera loves the 5,000K white point.  It's nice to see actual white whites.

[kelticsylk]

Tracks laid from Spruce Creek to East Altoona (about 15'). I staged this photo at Homer...


Doesn't look a thing like the "fly under" at Homer, but still looks Pennsyesque. Girder bridge is temporary, will be replaced by stone tunnel portals.

[BCR 570]

Work continues on cook diner BCOL 6508.  This week's efforts were focused on the longitudinal water tank enclosure which sits on the roof.  The challenge was to create a rectangular block in styrene which has the curvature of the roof underneath and on top.  I will be using a Con-Cor coach roof for my scratchbuild so my part needs to sit flush on top.  I also built two small roof hatches and a mushroom vent for the roof:




Next up is more work on the underframe.


Tim

[rochsub]

Shot a quick video.  Op session this Sunday.

[Catt]

How about some Z pics?









Karin did the houses.

[wm3798]

I worked for awhile with my Q2 to improve electrical pickup and transfer between the engine and tender.  It's by no means perfect, but given that problems have started popping up at specific places on the layout, the issues seem to have moved from the loco itself to the fact that it's really picky about trackwork.  Here she is on her maiden loop with train in tow:



Since then, she has completed many loops around the layout.  She's certainly a stump-puller, even without the traction tire.  Many thanks to the Laurel Valley Shops for the DCC install!

The only other thing that I've managed to accomplish is completing my lighting project.  The basement is now entirely lit by 5,000K LED bulbs.  The entire track lighting array draws a whopping 200 watts (about the same as 3 incandescents), and more importantly, the lights don't double as heaters anymore.  The incandescents could easily overwhelm the AC in the room, even on a mild day.  Also, my camera loves the 5,000K white point.  It's nice to see actual white whites.

Glad to hear she's getting a work out.
Judging by the picture, I might suggest a re-think on your blue walls with the new lighting scheme...  It's a tad bilious. Are you considering fading it toward the top of the wall for a better sky effect?

Lee

[spookshow]

I finally finished up the last two cars I need for my UP excursion train. Now I just need a couple of water bottles and I'll be in business.









Cheers,
-Mark

[mark dance]

I have a bunch of projects underway...

1) Progress at Troup Junction continues

I added a couple hundred more coniferous trees to the scene and finished ballasting the right of ways (CPR and GN).  A package of Super tree armatures from SE appeared yesterday so I can build the deciduous trees and shrubs to finish the scenery.  Oh, and all the line poles are in progress as I need to revise the number of cross arms and insulators to match the prototype.





2) The recent Vanrail event showed me the benefit of operational flagmen.  During an unplanned double sawbye one of the operators whipped out this little guy…



I liked the application though not the appearance so I made up a couple of my own and have two more to build.  The black post hides the drop down resistor and makes a convenient handle so that they can be placed between the tracks with one hand.







3) I have been experimenting with "off-board" sound.  My initial vision was to build a Bluetooth transmitting system using JMRI's Virtual Sound Decoder which would run on a inexpensive smart phone in parallel to WiThrottle.  As an experiment to see what the head phone "in cab" effect might be I purchased my first sound decoder (Tsunami FM locomotive) and built Lance Mindheim's headphone sound system.  In this system the sound decoder is mounted under the benchwork and wired in parallel to the motor control decoder in the loco.  The sound decoder sends its signal to a radio transmitter and from there the signal is received by a set of headphones the engineer wears. 

My initial results were....awful.  I didn't like the quality of the sound but more importantly the effect of hearing the sound come through the headphones rather than from the model I was observing was quite disconcerting. I will continue to experiment and will get feedback from local operators but in the meantime I have routed the sound signal to some cheap computer speakers mounted under the benchwork under where the loco routinely operates which gives a better effect...this still needs lots of refinement but I am reconsidering the whole Bluetooth headset thing. I have ordered a few Atlas sound-equipped S2s (I really need S4s...anyone planning to make conversion truck sideframes??) so these switchers, plus the under layout Tsunami I have now, may be the end of the C&W's sound experiment, or just the beginning...we shall see.

4) Based on some expert advice from Rick Kang (ex-SP Dispatcher and rules trainer) I have been looking at revising the C&W’s Dispatching control system. This may incorporate automatic semaphore protection of trains when they pass a Train order station as per the prototype.  A fast 20 minute protection should be achievable by synchronizing the logic in the PanelPro panel with the Loconet fastclock but I have been getting conflicting feedback from local Operators on the wisdom of adding this complexity.  More research is required.

5) I also began work on the next two large bridges this week - McCormack Creek and Barr Creek bridges.  The designs have been finalized and all the components are now here so I should be cutting brass and plastic next week.

Wayyy too much MRR stuff going on...I think I need some focus! Have a great weekend!

md

[DKS]

Stunning.

[strummer]

Absolutely...

Mark in Oregon

[keeper]

I've never seen cars with mixed 2axle and 3 axle trucks, crazy UP...

Thomas